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Solo LevelingSeason 2 surpassed everyone’s expectations in terms of animation quality and direction. It was indeed the most successful anime series of 2025 so far. Each episode of the second season was an action-packed experience, but the ultimatefight between Jinwoo and the Ant Kingwas definitely the major highlight of Season 2.
Given the popularity ofSolo Levelingafter the release of Season 2, one would assume that A-1 Pictures made a huge pile of money from the anime’s massive viewership. That doesn’t seem to be the case, though. Unfortunately, the previous fiscal year, ending in March 2025, wasn’t a good one for the Japanese animation studio. The studio reporting heavy losses despite delivering a successful anime likeSolo Levelingdefinitely has fans worried, and they wonder if this financial setback will in some way affect the production ofSolo LevelingSeason 3.
A-1 Pictures Reports Biggest Financial Loss In Over A Decade
EvenSolo LevelingCouldn’t Prevent The Studio From Suffering This Financial Setback
As reported byGamebiz, recently,A-1 Pictures revealed in its financial report that it suffered a loss of 178 million yen (approximately $1.2 million) in the fiscal year ending March 2025. Last year, the studio reported a net profit of 24 million yen, and the report from the last ten years shows that the studio has consistently made a profit each year, until 2025, of course. This is clearly not usual for a successful animation studio like A-1 Pictures. Also, the fact that the studio suffered a massive loss the same year when it deliveredSolo LevelingSeason 2 makes this whole thing all the more shocking.
Apparently,a single anime series can’t carry the entire animation studio towards massive profits. Of course,Solo LevelingSeason 2 garnered massive viewership, but the other anime series released by the studio during the given year weren’t popular enough to drive profits. Some otherprojects that A-1 Pictures deliveredduring this period wereNieR:Automata Ver1.1a,Sword Art Online Alternative: Gun Gale Online II, andGoddess of Victory: NIKKE OLD TALES Special Animation Full Ver.And yes, none of them were evenclosetoSolo Levelingin terms of popularity or viewership.
If the pain doesn’t kill me, it will almost make me stronger. - Jinwoo in theSolo Levelingmanhwa
Also, let’s not forget thatAniplex and Crunchyroll hold the rights forSolo Leveling;A-1 Pictures is simply tasked with delivering the animation. While A-1 Pictures may have received its fees for producing the anime, the majority of the profits likely went to Aniplex and Crunchyroll. Honestly, if fans wish to see the financial impact ofSolo LevelingSeason 2’s success, they should look at the24,098 million yen profit that Aniplex baggedduring the same period when A-1 Pictures suffered its biggest loss.
Fans Are Worried About the Production OfSolo LevelingSeason 3
Well, The Loss Won’t Likely Impact The Budget Of The Next Season
Suffering a loss of 178 million yen is clearly no joke, so it’s understandable why fans think that this willimpact the budget for Season 3. Currently, there’s no official confirmation onwhen the anime will return with Season 3, and fans speculate that the studio might also delay the production of the third season. However, the truth is thatthis particular setback is unlikely to affect the production ofSolo LevelingSeason 3.
As we’ve previously mentioned, Aniplex and Crunchyroll, both backed by Sony, hold the rights toSolo Leveling.Given how profitableSolo Levelinghas been for Sony, the multinational conglomerate can spare enough budget for Aniplex to start the production ofSolo LevelingSeason 3 at A-1 Pictures. In fact,putting most of its resources on the next season ofSolo Levelingcould be the safest bet for A-1 Pictures to recover from this loss. In short, the fandom shouldn’t be worried about this whole thing impacting the quality of production ofSolo LevelingSeason 3.
However, it is worth noting that several other factors can still impact Season 3’s production. Firstly, one should keep in mind that it takes a long time for an animation studio to deliver the quality that A-1 Pictures delivered inSolo LevelingSeason 2. For instance, a single episode of the second seasontook around 10-12 months to complete production. That’s right; it means that Season 2 was already in production alongside Season 1, and if the same holds true for Season 3,we might see it arrive on our screens in 2026. However, if Aniplex or Crunchyroll has not yet started production on the third season, we might not see it arrive until 2028, if, of course, they want to deliver the same or even better animation quality in Season 3.
Solo Leveling
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A-1 Pictures' Solo Leveling is an anime based on Chugong’s popular web novel. Set in an unforgiving fantasy world where hunters explore dungeons filled with monsters, the vulnerable Sung Jinwoo gains a significant power boost after he is picked to be a solo player by the System.
